Criteria

Our awards program to include Top 40 Under 40; Top 40 Under 40 Specialty Awards. All applicants must be 39 or under by June 7, 2018 and working in Canada.
Judging will be based on a point system (for a total of 10 points), and will use the following criteria to select the winners:

Nominee’s efforts, accomplishments and impact. The nomination should reflect a meaningful commitment of time and service by the nominee. The nominee’s service should demonstrate positive impact on the industry.

Work Accomplishments [within the past year] – 5 points – Briefly describe one or two examples of something the nominee accomplished during the last year. Ex taking the lead of an innovating campaign; helping lead or launch a new division; increasing business by (x)%; demonstrate excellence in creativity; great problem solving; what did the individual do to make them stand apart at their respective company

Volunteer – [within the past year] – 2 points – giving back to the community, donating your time to a great cause/ organization/ project

PR In Canada member – 1 point – You are an current member of PR In Canada (Pro or Pro+) is your chance for coworkers, clients and others who have worked with you to submit their vote for you

** Add as many specific examples as possible to help back up your nomination.

Whether you are submitting an example of a work accomplishment or just voting for a nominee it ALL counts towards each nominee’s point score, be sure to take part and your voice heard!

Specialty Awards

Account Director or Supervisor of the Year: Superior rapport with clients; developed unique programs whose success should be supported with data. Testimonials from clients will factor into the judging.

Agency Account Manager of the Year: Strong planning skills and vision for PR strategy for a single account or multiple accounts. Demonstrated leadership with clients and team members.

Community Relations Professional of the Year: Either launched a new and successful community outreach program or took an existing program to new heights. Showed leadership in inspiring internal stakeholder engagement with an organization’s community. (Client-side only)

Corporate Social Responsibility Leader: Either launched a new and successful sustainability program or took an existing program to new heights. Goals of sustainability program(s) should be stated clearly, and metrics showing success should be evident. (Client-side only)

Crisis Manager of the Year: Led overall communications efforts during an organizational crisis; proven ability to protect an organization’s reputation and stay on message during a crisis. (Client-side only)

Digital Communications Leader of the Year: Led a communications team to innovate across multiple digital platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. Results should be measured in number of Twitter followers for a brand or organization, Facebook likes, increase in Web traffic, etc.

Financial Communications Professional of the Year: Led outreach to investors and analysts during a challenging or notable period for an organization, and succeeded in having the core message resonate with stakeholders and the media. May also have advised on or led communications during a strategic shift for an organization.

Government Communicator of the Year: Led successful communications efforts for a local, provincial or federal agency or department. Communications challenges for the agency or department should be stated clearly, as well as evidence of success. (Client-side only)

Internal Communicator of the Year: Successfully led an organization’s internal communications efforts during a major organizational change such as a merger, acquisition, CEO change, product launch or rebranding, or has established a successful intranet or social media policy. (Client-side only)

Investor Relations Professional of the Year – In the area of investor relations, you have been a rock star over the last year within the financial community

Media Relations Professional of the Year: Surpassed target goals of media impressions and awareness of a brand, product, service or organization. Demonstrated strong relationships with journalists and bloggers through all channels, including social media, or succeeded at respositioning a brand through media outreach.

Public Relations Professional of the Year: Corporate: Demonstrated success at repositioning an organization or brand; led programs that resulted in significant revenue increases; produced unique PR campaigns that led to increased budgets for PR activity within a company; successfully built external programs and partnerships. (Client-side only)

Public Relations Professional of the Year: Nonprofit/Association: Oversaw communications efforts that led to increased donations or membership, or secured major media coverage that led to increase in awareness of goals of nonprofit organization or association. (Client-side only)

Public Relations Team Leader: Led a public relations team that demonstrated consistent success over the past year; established herself/himself as a mentor and expanded skill sets of teammates.

Publicist of the Year: Excelled as a brand advocate and at leading media tours, crafting sound bites, writing press releases, pitching the media and securing positive media coverage.

Public Affairs Professional of the Year: A leader in political and public affairs who has successfully spearheaded advocacy initiatives and influenced policy and public opinion.

PR Person of the Year: You have had a stellar career so far, and continue to deliver results for your agency or brand, must have been working in the public relations industry for 5+ years

Executive or Manager: As a senior industry professional, you have been in management roles for 5+ years and continue to deliver game changing results

Founder: Coming into the industry you wanted to make big changes, now you run a leading Canadian marketing agency that is having a strong impact on the business world, must have been working in the public relations industry for 5+ years

Team Awards

Agency-Client Team: As a duo, your agency & client relationship has surpassed excellence and resulted in extraordinary business results (Must be at least 1 individual from an agency & client)